STRABAG says it faced a mixed market environment in 2024 but delivered strong performance. The company’s results have been driven by strong momentum in infrastructure and challenges in building construction.
The firm says it showed its ability to offset declining trends in individual construction segments. This is due to its broad positioning, not only by segment, but also by geography, client structure, and project scale.
Stefan Kratochwill, chairman of the executive board of STRABAG said that the group generated an output volume of €19,238.80 million in the 2024 financial year, representing a slight increase of 1% or € 100 million. The consolidated Group revenue amounted to €17,422.22 million.
The operating segments North + West contributed 41%, South + East 41% and International + Special Divisions 18% to the revenue. After exceeding the € 25 billion mark for the first time in the first half of the year, the order backlog was increased further to €25,362.47 million by the end of 2024, which corresponds to an increase of €1.9 billion or 8% compared to the previous year.
The earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 16% to €1,644.18 million. In a year-on-year comparison, this corresponds to a noticeable increase in the EBITDA margin from 8.0% to 9.4%. In line with the higher investments as part of the Strategy 2030, depreciation and amortisation expense increased as expected by 8% to €582.29 million.
The earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) exceeded the €1 billion mark for the first time in 2024, amounting to €1,061.89 million. This resulted in a significant increase in the EBIT margin from 5.0% to 6.1%. The EBIT margin in the 2024 financial year was considerably higher than originally projected, mainly due to positive earnings effects in the North + West segment and – compared to the previous year – lower negative effects on earnings in the volatile international project business.
The net interest income again rose sharply year-on-year, increasing from €44.13 million to €75.42 million. This growth was primarily due to the higher interest income, caused by the continued high interest rates in 2024 and the firm’s high net cash position.
The income tax rate was 27.2%, considerably lower than in the previous year. This was due to a lower shortfall in tax relief on large-scale projects. The net income totalled €828.33 million, up 31% from the previous year’s level.
The earnings owed to minority shareholders totalled €5.33 million, compared to € 2.89 million in the previous year. The net income after minorities increased by 31% to € 823.00 million, the highest figure since the company’s inception. The earnings per share amounted to €7.35 (2023: € 6.30).
The total of assets and liabilities grew by 7% year on year to € 14,674.58 million. On the assets side, the increase was mainly due to higher inventories and cash and cash equivalents. Growth was also seen in the Group’s investment property, attributable to the establishment of the STRABAG Hold Estate portfolio for the purpose of managing long-term, strategic real estate holdings.
The Management Board expects a significant increase in output volume to approximately € 21 billion in the 2025 financial year. This forecast is based on the high order backlog and on the expected contributions from recent acquisitions. An increase in output volume is forecast for all operating segments in 2025. While several positive earnings effects coincided in 2024, the EBIT margin is expected to normalise again in 2025. In light of the first tangible effects of the Group Strategy, the Management Board is raising the EBIT margin target for 2025 to ≥ 4.5%.
